Hebrew word · H3459

יִשְׁמְעֵאלִי

yishme'elim

Ishmaelite

Literally 'descendants of Ishmael,' Abraham's son by Hagar (Gen 16; 25:12–18), whose tribes lived 'from Havilah to Shur, opposite Egypt' (25:18). The name could also be used more loosely for desert-edge caravan peoples in general.

Appears 8 times in 8 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

Someone descended from Ishmael who was a man of Arabia living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.16.11;

son of: Abraham (H0085) and Hagar (H1904);

half-brother of: Isaac (H3327), Zimran (H2175), Jokshan (H3370), Medan (H4091), Midian (H4080), Ishbak (H3435) and Shuah (H7744);

father of: Nebaioth (H5032), Kedar (H6938), Adbeel (H0110), Mibsam (H4017), Mishma (H4927), Dumah (H1746), Massa (H4854), Hadad (H2301), Tema (H8485), Jetur (H3195), Naphish (H5305), Kedemah (H6929) and Mahalath (H4258)

Group of yish.ma.el (יִשְׁמָעֵאל "Ishmael" H3458)

§ Ishmaelite , of Ishmael "God will hear"

a descendant of Ishmael

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Genesis 37:25

Range of meaning

Literally 'descendants of Ishmael,' Abraham's son by Hagar (Gen 16; 25:12–18), whose tribes lived 'from Havilah to Shur, opposite Egypt' (25:18). The name could also be used more loosely for desert-edge caravan peoples in general.

Against the English

English readers may take 'Ishmaelites' as a strict ethnic term, or even read later identities (Arabs, Muslims) back into it. The text is not interested in that. It simply names a familiar class of long-distance traders.

How it drifted

Later Jewish, Christian and Islamic traditions linked Ishmael with the Arabs. That link came much later than this story.

Used elsewhere in the period

Gen 37:25, 27, 28; 39:1. Judges 8:24 says Midianites wore gold earrings 'because they were Ishmaelites,' which suggests the two labels could overlap. Psalm 83:6 lists Ishmaelites among desert peoples.

Where it appears

Genesis · 4

  1. Genesis 37:25 יִשְׁמְעֵאלִ֔ים Ishmaelites

    And as they sat down to eat a meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were carrying spices, balm, and myrrh on their way down to Egypt.

    Here: 'Ishmaelites.' On the surface these are descendants of Ishmael, Abraham's other son and so the brothers' distant cousins. In practice the name may also have served as a general label for desert caravan traders (compare v. 28, 36; Judg 8:24).

  2. Genesis 37:27 לַיִּשְׁמְעֵאלִ֗ים to the Ishmaelites

    Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay a hand on him; for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And they agreed.

  3. Genesis 37:28 לַיִּשְׁמְעֵאלִ֖ים to the Ishmaelites

    So when the Midianite traders passed by, his brothers pulled Joseph out of the pit and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.

    Here: 'To the Ishmaelites.' These are descendants of Ishmael, Abraham's son by Hagar, and they are the caravan first seen in v. 25. How this name relates to 'Midianites' is one of the verse's famous puzzles.

  4. Genesis 39:1 הַיִּשְׁמְעֵאלִ֔ים the Ishmaelites

    Meanwhile, Joseph had been taken down to Egypt, where an Egyptian named Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.

Judges · 1

  1. Judges 8:24 יִשְׁמְעֵאלִ֖ים [were] Ishmaelites

    Then he added, “Let me make a request of you, that each of you give me an earring from his plunder.” (For the enemies had gold earrings because they were Ishmaelites.)

1 Chronicles · 2

  1. 1 Chronicles 2:17 הַיִּשְׁמְעֵאלִֽי׃ the Ishmaelite

    Abigail was the mother of Amasa, whose father was Jether the Ishmaelite.

  2. 1 Chronicles 27:30 הַיִּשְׁמְעֵלִ֑י the Ishmaelite

    Obil the Ishmaelite was in charge of the camels. Jehdeiah the Meronothite was in charge of the donkeys.

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 83:6 וְיִשְׁמְעֵאלִ֗ים and [the] Ishmaelites

    the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, of Moab and the Hagrites,

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.